"Hey, wake up", a female voice said. Deirdra thought she was dreaming again, until the person nudged her shoulder with the toe of their boot. "You better get up before Valon eats all the doughnuts". Deirdra groaned and slowly sat up, squinting as she waited for her eyes to adjust to the light. When they had, she saw that someone had picked up the chairs and restacked them. Aditionally, the store room door stood open and an overhead light had been turned on. "C'mon. I'll help you", the same voice said. Deirdra looked in the direction it came from and came to the conclusion that she must be hallucinating now. There stood Mai Valentine, hand outstretched. Deirdra recognised her from the tournament at Duelist Kingdom where they had been keen competitors for a shot at dueling Maximillion Pegasus. Of course, that honour had ultimately gone to Seto Kaiba. And given what had happened to Kaiba, she hadn't envied his position as she had thought she would. She wondered if Mai felt the same. "Do you plan on sitting there all day?", Mai asked. Her smile was starting to fade. "Not at all. Sorry", Deirdra said quickly, accepting the helping hand. When she was back on her feet, she remembered the green stone from last night. She looked down and, sure enough, there it was on the floor -along with something else. A card. One Deirdra had never seen before. It was a magic card called 'The Seal of Orichalcos'. "How did this get here?", she asked aloud. "It's yours. It shows you are one of us now", Mai said, adding "As does that" as she pointed to the stone in Deirdra's hand. Deirdra put the stone and card in her pocket and tried to put last night's experience out of her mind as she followed Mai from the room. She didn't want to think about the things she'd seen. At least not now. "You want a chance to shower before breakfast? There's still time", Mai asked, stopping outside a door. "Okay. Sure", Deirdra replied. She wouldn't mind spending a few minutes under a spray of warm water after the motorcycle ride and a night lying on the dirty floor."You can use mine. Just clean up when you're done", Mai said. She opened the door and they went inside. The decidely feminine decor led Deirdra to assume that this must be Mai's living quarters. She was soon directed to the bathroom and shown where the towels and toiletries were kept. Mai went to leave but, pausing at the door first, said "We may as well be friends here. We're the only gals in the place you know.." "Sure", Deirdra said, by way of agreement. Mai then left, shutting the door behind her.
After the short but enjoyable (and much-needed) shower, Deirdra redressed in her own clothes (Mai's bustiers and short-shorts weren't exactly her style), hung up her wet towel to dry, and wiped out the tub. Leaving the room, she realised that she had failed to ask Mai where the group was meeting for breakfast. She could only hope that she would bump into someone who knew, as she doubted the other girl was coming back for her. She made her way down the hall, passed the store room, and came to a stop at the conference room. She peeked inside to see if anyone was there but the room was dark. Then she heard voices and approaching footsteps. Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood rounded the corner. Two more people she had dueled against in the tournament. Though, unlike Mai, she couldn't say she liked them very much. And she was pretty sure the feeling was mutual. Right now the dweebish duo were engaged in an argument and they walked right past without noticing her. Mai rounded the corner next, and Deirdra asked her "Who else works for Dartz? I'm expecting to see Yugi and Joey any minute". Mai grimaced at the mention of Joey. That struck Deirdra as odd. She thought Mai liked Joey, even cared about him. But look what had happened with her and Alister. They were barely on speaking terms now. Perhaps Mai and Joey had had a falling out as well. Speak of the devil..."Move it, Nimrods", a voice behind them said. Deirdra turned in time to see Alister shove Mai aside and slip between Rex and Weevil to take the lead. Rex and Weevil DID notice that. "Who you calling a Nimrod, Carrottop?", Rex squawked. Alister chose to ignore the insult, smirking as they fumed.
The group took an elevator to the 4th floor, where the cafeteria was located. Well, actually they took three elevators, as Rex and Weevil didn't want to ride with Deirdra or Alister, Mai didn't want to ride with Alister or Rex and Weevil, and Alister didn't want to ride with anyone. How petty is this?, Deirdra thought to herself, riding down with Mai. When they walked into the cafeteria, she saw that Raphael and the spiky-haired boy, who must be the notorious Valon, were already there. And sure enough, a towering stack of powdered doughnuts was on Valon's plate. Dartz was no where to be seen. She got the distinct impression that he was the kind of person who preferred to take his meals in the comfort and privacy of his own quarters. She would later learn that her assumption was correct.
She surveyed the food that was spread over a long table next to one wall. It was akin to the 'continental breakfast' served at many cheap motels -coffee, doughnuts, cold cereal, and some bruised, overripe fruit. However, she was hungry and wasn't about to turn it down. She grabbed up a pint of milk, a mini box of Frosted Flakes, and a squishy banana and picked a seat. Mai joined her, while Alister slid into the seat next to Valon and opposite Raphael. Rex and Weevil occupied a third table, where they chattered endlessly about their new cards and debated whose deck was strongest while their cereal got soggy. Deirdra was surprised to see that this time it was Valon, rather than Raphael, who was watching her every move. He grinned and winked when he saw that she had noticed. She immediately looked away. The next time she ventured to glance in his direction, he was elbowing Alister, who muttered something but never looked up from his coffee. Raphael, seated across from the pair, seemed absorbed in his own thoughts. Something was weighing heavy on his mind. Deirdra could tell. Meanwhile, Alister was scooting away from Valon, who was now covered in powdered sugar. He had it all around his mouth, on the tip of his nose, and down the front of his shirt. Catching Deirdra's eye again, he grinned devilishly. Deirdra couldn't help but grin back this time. He was kinda cute. Mai watched their silent interchange with amusement. "He's an insufferable flirt, that one is", she said. "I've noticed", Deirdra replied.